


Just an Assignment

by leen_go (cagedchaos)



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-20
Updated: 2012-11-20
Packaged: 2018-10-25 09:39:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10761603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cagedchaos/pseuds/leen_go
Summary: Lu Han needs help with his relationship and Wu Yifan is the perfect person for the job.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Full request: "well basically it's about kris, a hired relationship ruiner /is that the right term?/ who fall in love during his duty with his client's bf (yixing) and at the same time yixing find out abt his job and eventually question kris' feelings for him"

Wu Yifan doesn't love his job. He doesn't even like it, really, but he is good, no,  _great_ , at it. He knows how to manipulate people and he knows how to lie; it's part of his job description. 

His most recent client is someone that Yifan swears has a face that is much too cute to be using such backhanded ways, but he keeps his mouth shut of course, because he's not being paid to have opinions, he's being paid to get the job done. And his job this time is nothing out of the ordinary, and his client is one of his regulars. 

Lu Han probably contributes to almost a tenth of the total income Yifan makes, being prone to falling in, and out of, love as quickly as the seasons change. Lu Han isn't a bad person and he isn't exactly a playboy, but Yifan definitely thinks that he's spineless for never wanting to be the one who ends a relationship. If Lu Han had been Yifan's friend, Yifan would have told him to man up years ago, but Yifan is a businessman, and Lu Han brings him plenty of business.  

Yifan sits in his office chair, leaning forwards on his elbows as he watches Lu Han sign his name carefully on the dotted line at the end of the ten-page agreement. It is the same package that Yifan gave Lu Han five months ago, and eight months ago, and thirteen months ago, and Lu Han can almost recite all of its contents by heart, which he had proved when he had walked into Yifan's office an hour ago. "We do everything by your terms, I don't ever question your actions, I can’t engage in another relationship before you help me finish this one officially, and I am not to ever tell anyone who you really are. Did I get everything?" Lu Han had confirmed just as Yifan had been about to describe his terms of service, a practice he provides for all of his clients. Yifan had smiled from across the table, "You missed the part where you can't decide to abort in the middle of the process," he had amended politely.  

Most of Yifan's assignments are handled such that the 'victim' willingly removes themselves from the relationship, after whatever approach that Yifan has deemed most appropriate for the situation. Sometimes it's an angry wife who refuses to sign divorce papers or to forfeit the family car, sometimes it's a clingy boyfriend who just won't stop texting the client or asking 'where is our relationship going?', sometimes it's an overbearing parent who  thinks that their son or daughter deserves better than the person who's with them now, and sometimes, as in Lu Han's case, the client just needs a clean break that they know they can't achieve without an outsider's help. Wu Yifan couldn't possibly care less about the circumstances, as long as he gets paid. 

"Is that everything then?" Lu Han is already getting up, the metal legs of his chair pushing backwards noisily over the tiled floor as he retreats to the closet in Yifan's office to pull his jacket from the hanger and swing his colourful scarf around his neck. Yifan thinks to himself that the scarf matches its owner's personality perfectly, because Lu Han has an unnatural bright personality for someone who's fallen in and out of love so many times. Perhaps it's this optimism that allows his heart to be so easily swayed. Yifan ignores the urge to ask if Lu Han has actually been in a relationship where he wasn't the first to want to leave. 

As usual, Yifan walks his client to the elevator, waiting patiently for the doors to close and for Lu Han's face to disappear behind them before he heads back to his desk to review his files. Lu Han's newest unsuspecting sucker is a male by the name of Zhang Yixing. According to Yifan’s research, Zhang Yixing works as part of a professional dance crew under the pseudonym 'Lay'. Lu Han had reported that the two had met at an awards after-party that had been organized by the company Lu Han works at in the marketing department.  

Lu Han doesn't want to end it because he doesn't like Zhang Yixing, but simply because a spark just simply isn't there. Zhang Yixing is a good and attentive boyfriend, even if he has missed a couple of dinner dates because he'd been too busy practicing and then lost track of time, but Zhang Yixing had always made up for it later. The two simply didn't (in Lu Han's words) 'click'.  

As Yifan rereads Zhang Yixing's personality profile (kindhearted, glass-half-full, hardworking, and head-in-the-clouds among other things) for the tenth time, he makes the premature judgment that this will be an easy task. 

… 

Lu Han never quite knows just what to expect from Wu Yifan, 'Inter-relationship Consultant' as is written on his business card. Lu Han actually dislikes how pretentious the glossy black card looks with its sharp and minimal white print, but has to admit that it draws attention. Wu Yifan isn't generous with whom he gives his cards and Lu Han can't remember exactly how he'd gotten the one in his wallet now, though he's pretty sure it was from the second time Lu Han had paid for Wu Yifan’s services. The first time he had hired Wu Yifan was a mistake, because Lu Han had wanted _actual_ advice on how to fix his relationship with Oh Sehun, not simply to end it (though he ended up breaking up with Sehun anyway; he had gotten too tired of always taking the lead). 

On previous contracts, Wu Yifan had shown up unannounced when Lu Han had been out on a date and had immediately started to flirt with his target, and he had also arranged to work  _with_  Lu Han to pose as a coworker, or a relative. What Wu Yifan has planned this time is not something Lu Han even bothers to speculate about, because as he had learned on a previous endeavor, it would only drive him crazy being anxious about it, especially since Wu Yifan has the occasional habit of not showing up for a least a week after Lu Han has signed the contract.  

Even though Lu Han had decided to acquire Wu Yifan's services over a week ago, he continues to go out with Yixing. Afterall, Zhang Yixing is a fun person to be around. They share the same ideals and they both enjoy reading the same genre of books. Lu Han sighs heavily after he hangs up his call with Yixing to book a night out at his house to watch the soccer game after dinner at a terrible Chinese restaurant because Lu Han is craving an Americanized dish called 'chicken balls' that had been integrated into the menu to meet the demands of a growing foreign population in the city. This is one of the instances that Zhang Yixing and Lu Han are different, because Yixing refuses to even acknowledge the dish ("That's not even Chinese food and you know it, Lu Han," Yixing had a habit of saying every time Lu Han ordered it) while Lu Han had fallen in love with it the first time his tongue had tasted the red gelatinous sauce.  

Lu Han wishes so hard that he felt more than friendship and brotherliness towards Zhang Yixing, because they could be great together. 

… 

Zhang Yixing likes to believe in fairytales, not because he believes that there are such things as talking woodland creatures, or fairies, or elves, or unicorns, but because fairytales are human depictions of what  _could_  happen, a verbal and visual representation of hope for the future. His best friend, and also the captain of his dance crew, Kim Jongin, thinks Yixing is crazy and hopelessly idealistic. Yixing’s boyfriend had told him once that it was endearing but Yixing thinks Lu Han is just being nice, or just wants to get in his pants, or more likely, both. 

Zhang Yixing isn't sure what to feel when it comes to Lu Han. He's sure he likes him, but he's not sure he  _likes_  him just yet, though he _is_ pretty sure that Jongin thinks Lu Han is pretty cute. Jongin hasn't actually met Lu Han, but Yixing's best friend has a terrible habit of 'borrowing' Yixing's phone and looking through his pictures. (Yixing has long given up on changing the password because Jongin can always guess it within ten minutes anyway.) 

Yixing doesn't have to try very hard around Lu Han because the two are practically peas from the same pod. Conversation comes as easy as breathing, and it is maybe because being with Lu Han is  _too easy_  that Yixing hasn't quite fallen for Lu Han.  

When Lu Han calls him up to go to dinner and then to watch the game, Yixing decides that it would probably be best if he ends their relationship before anyone gets hurt. They've only been going out just over a month, and if Yixing was to tell Lu Han the truth now, there might actually still be a shot at them staying friends,  _without_  benefits. 

Yixing thinks it's best not to wait until after dinner to say his bit, mostly because he knows he'll just be anxious throughout the entire meal otherwise. He wants to say something during the walk over, but chickens out and ends up waiting until the waiter has returned with two beers. 

Lu Han beats him the punch though, "Hey, Yixing, are you feeling okay? You haven’t said much today." Lu Han takes a sip from his glass, slight concern colouring his brown eyes as he stares at Yixing from across their square table.  

Yixing blinks in surprise, "Yeah, I'm fine," he closes his menu with a deep breath, "I do have something to say though." 

Lu Han raises an eyebrow and sets his drink down on the center of its coaster carefully, expression turning serious, "What is it?" 

Before Yixing can get a single syllable out, he is interrupted by another voice that he doesn't recognize. 

"Lu Han? Is that you?" 

Yixing looks up and finds a tall man standing with an expectant look on his face as he addresses Lu Han, who seems to be just as surprised at the arrival of this man. "I'm sorry, but you are?" Lu Han asks politely, leaning back in his chair with an eyebrow raised. 

"It's Kris! From high school?" The new arrival draws up a chair from a nearby table and sits himself perpendicular to both Lu Han and Yixing. 

"Oh, uh, right," Lu Han replies, though it looks to Yixing like Lu Han is still trying to remember this ‘Kris from high school’. "Fancy meeting you here." 

"Oh, well, I come here once in a while for dinner," Kris explains, not terribly helpfully. 

Yixing can't help but notice that he's being ignored, and while it's not terribly offensive to him most days, he's upset to have had been interrupted just when he had mustered enough courage to start an important conversation with Lu Han. Besides, he finds it somewhat rude that, except for a brief moment, he has only seen the back of this guy's head. Yixing clears his throat loud enough so that Lu Han finally turns his attention back to him, but not loudly enough that he sounds obvious (he hopes). 

"Oh, right," Lu Han says, using his hand to gesture towards each as he introduced them, "This is Zhang Yixing, and uh, this is Kris, from my high school days, I guess." 

For the first time since he sat down, Kris turns to face Yixing and Yixing barely remembers to hold out his arm to shake hands. His thick eyebrows are the first thing that Yixing notices, and he can't help but compare Kris to a certain red bird he flicks at green pigs on his phone when he's bored. The second thing he notices is the way his bright smile pulls his lips pull up to reveal his gums and perfectly aligned white teeth. Yixing curses in his head because he's thinking that Kris is attractive when his current boyfriend is still sitting at the table across from him.  

"So, how do _you two_  know each other, Zhang Yixing?" Kris asks, his captivating eyes still on Yixing. 

Yixing likes the way his name sounds in Kris' low voice and he almost forgets that he has been asked a question, "Oh, uh, I'm Lu Han's..." Yixing pauses because he doesn't exactly want to tell this handsome man (who he had  _just_ met) that he was Lu Han's boyfriend, since Kris had interrupted just as Yixing was about to remove that label from himself. Yixing thinks for a moment before continuing. "We met at a party," he answers Kris’ question directly, not bothering to offer anything else. 

Before Kris can ask anything else, the trio is interrupted by the waiter who asks if they are ready to order. Kris looks between Lu Han and Yixing eagerly, "You haven't eaten either? Would you mind terribly if I joined?" 

Yixing doesn't know whether to say yes, because he should finish what he had wanted to say to Lu Han, or no, because he wants Kris to stay. Fortunately for Yixing, Lu Han makes the decision for him. "It's not a problem. Right, Yixing?" 

Yixing feigns indifference with a shrug and orders a plate of fried noodles for himself. 

Kris smiles even wider, making his eyes scrunch up, "Great! Then I'll have the house special," Kris orders, completely oblivious to the way that Yixing is trying very hard to concentrate on anything but Kris, which, at the moment, is a water painting of old China that is hanging on the wall behind Lu Han. It's the same concentration that allows Yixing to make it all the way to dessert (sweetened coconut cubes) without choking on his food because he has forgotten to chew properly while staring at Kris' face. 

Yixing is actually rather proud of his self-control until Kris suggests that the three of them head over to do some rock climbing at a place he frequents. "R-rock climbing?" Yixing sputters, nearly choking on his dessert. Yixing has never been rock climbing, and the idea of it is foreign, making him both curious as well as cautious. He's not even thirty yet and he has no plans to die from falling from a high place. "How high are we talking about?" 

Kris seems to understand his anxiety and laughs kindheartedly, "They have different walls for you to choose from. And don't worry, you'll be strapped in properly. They don't let you climb without gear, especially if you're a rookie." 

It's only then that Yixing remembers the plans that he and Lu Han have already made to watch the soccer game, “We can’t. We’re supposed to watch the soccer game tonight,” Yixing announces, trying not to sound as disappointed as he feels about not being able to go rock-climbing with Kris. 

Kris looks at Lu Han expectantly but doesn't say anything. 

"Naw, it's okay,” Lu Han says, “It's not Manchester United tonight anyway. We've got some time." 

Yixing tries not to smile too widely as he shifts excitedly in his chair when the waiter returns with the bill.  

… 

Wu Yifan decides that Lu Han's description of Zhang Yixing is inaccurate. Yifan had stepped into the restaurant with the assumption that Zhang Yixing was outgoing and easy to talk to. Instead, he stepped out of the establishment with the assessment that Zhang Yixing is shy and not talkative at all. Throughout the entire meal, Zhang Yixing had probably said maybe five lines, maintaining his focus fixedly on the dish in front of him, or wandering elsewhere in the restaurant.

So Yifan suggested that they go rock climbing. He knew that Lu Han is afraid of heights, which would mean it would leave Zhang Yixing and himself alone on the wall. When Zhang Yixing stated that he and Lu Han had plans to watch a soccer game, Yifan didn't flinch. Instead, he smiled at Lu Han, nudging him in the knee lightly under the table as a reminder of the contract Lu Han had signed in Yifan's office. 

So here they are, staring up at a cement wall covered in colourful rock-like protrusions after the employees had fastened their harnesses securely. Lu Han has excused himself to stand further back (where the spotters for Yifan and Zhang Yixing stood), eyes glued to the ground in front of him, most likely so he doesn't have to look at the massive height of the wall towering over them. Contrastingly, Zhang Yixing is staring up in wonder, biting his lower lip nervously. 

"You ready?" Yifan asks. 

Zhang Yixing shrugs, "Where do I even start?" He asks, still staring at the wall, though now, it's at the base where the climb starts. 

Yifan uses this opportunity to move closer to Zhang Yixing. He puts a hand lightly on Zhang Yixing's back and pushes him towards the wall, using his other hand to demonstrate how to grab one of the holds, this one in forest green. "Pick holds that aren't too far apart because that's harder to keep your balance. You just kind of wing it, you know, do what seems most natural." Yifan feels Zhang Yixing breathe in sharply when he moves to stand right behind him, placing both hands on either side of Zhang Yixing's waist. "How about this, you try climbing a couple, and I'll stand right here in case you fall." 

"I thought you said that's what my spotter is for," Yixing asks. 

Yifan doesn't bother to hide the smirk that forms on his lips because he knows his charms are working. It wasn't as if Zhang Yixing could see his face anyway, "It is, but wouldn't you prefer someone you know to catch you if you fell?" 

"I met you two hours ago, Kris. I don't know you any more than I know that employee. At least  _he_ 's paid to make sure I don't fall to my death.  _You_ 're just Lu Han's high school buddy." 

"What, you don't trust me?" 

"Nope." 

A part of Yifan wants to say 'Good,' but he laughs instead, "Just climb. You'll be fine." 

After he takes a deep breath, Zhang Yixing does surprisingly well, making it up at least two feet before he decides to hop off, landing on both feet. "Something like that?" He asks, and Yifan detects a tiny hint of self-satisfaction. 

"Yeah, something like that," Yifan replies as he heads back to his side, placing a foot on one of the holds, "Wanna head up together? I'll go slow, just for you," he teases as he finds somewhere to put his left hand and picks his other foot off from the solid ground. 

Yifan keeps an eye on Zhang Yixing for the first minute, only to find out that his worry is misplaced because Zhang Yixing has no problem making his way up.  

"I thought you've never done this before?" Yifan asks when the two pause at the top. 

Zhang Yixing shrugs, "I'm a dancer. It's easy for me to keep my balance when my arms and legs are in weird positions." He starts making his way down without Yifan. "I think I've got the hang of this. You up for a race?" 

Yifan laughs when his feet finally touch the floor again, "You think you can beat me? I've been on this wall a hundred times before." 

"Well, I guess we'll just have to see then, won't we?" Zhang Yixing laughs for the first time and Yifan grins back because Lu Han was right when he had said Zhang Yixing was easy to be around. 

Yifan doesn't even mind (much) when Zhang Yixing actually beats him to the top on his first try. 

… 

Lu Han watches Wu Yifan and Zhang Yixing flirt with a scowl on his face and with arms crossed. He'd expected Yixing to at least put up some kind of fight against 'Kris''s obvious ways, or at least not completely ignore Lu Han, who is still technically Yixing's boyfriend. Shouldn't Yixing at least ask about Lu Han at least once during the whole night? Instead, Yixing and Wu Yifan have been going from wall to wall, increasing the difficulty of the climb, and all Lu Han can do is stand and watch with his arms folded. 

Lu Han knows the rules of engagement that Wu Yifan has set, but for some reason he's uncomfortable, something he's never bothered to feel with any of his previous boyfriends being whisked away by Wu Yifan. Lu Han still likes Yixing, even if it's not in the way he had hoped, and is suddenly having second thoughts about lying to him. Lu Han has never wondered about what Wu Yifan does after he’s freed Lu Han from his obligations until now. He assumes that the result can't be pleasant, and thinking about Yixing's innocence being destroyed by someone so experienced like Wu Yifan makes him sick to his stomach. Yixing doesn't deserve it. 

Too bad Lu Han has already signed a contract. 

… 

Yixing doesn't notice that Lu Han has left until his eye catches a TV on the far side of the building where one of the employees has flipped to the sports channel that is broadcasting the soccer game. When he turns to look for Lu Han, Yixing finds no one and he blames himself for having so much fun with Kris even after he learned that Lu Han was afraid of heights when the trio first stepped into the establishment.  

"Oh, shit!" He curses out loud, beckoning an employee over to help him out of his climbing gear. 

"What?" 

"I totally forgot about Lu Han!" Yixing exclaims, trying to kick both his borrowed climbing shoes off, and only managing to trip himself up. The clock on the far wall tells him that they'd been at the gym over two hours. When the staff member has finally freed Yixing of all the ropes and straps, Yixing makes a beeline towards his rented locker. 

"Leaving so soon?" Kris asks as he joins Yixing after removing his own harness. 

"Yeah, I gotta go find Lu Han and apologize." Yixing puts the wrong shoe on the wrong foot as he tries to tighten his watch around his wrist at the same time.  

"But you had fun, right?" 

Yixing takes a deep breath as he finally manages to put on his shoes properly and slams the metal door shut, "Look, you're a great guy, Kris, but right now, I have to go find Lu Han. He's my boyfriend and I can't be hanging out with strange guys that aren't him." Yixing realises that it's the first time that he's announced to Kris that Lu Han is his boyfriend and he notices Kris' shoulders' drop. Perhaps it's the guilt at ignoring Lu Han, but he kicks himself mentally for being so easily seduced by Kris. He hasn't even officially ended things with Lu Han and it would not be right to go after someone else while they were still officially together.  

… 

Yifan watches Zhang Yixing turn and leave with a perplexed feeling. When Zhang Yixing had so eagerly let Lu Han watch from the sidelines to climb artificial rock walls with Yifan, he'd reconfirmed with himself that this would be an easy case. He purposely hadn't said anything when he noticed Lu Han putting on his jacket and leaving, and hadn't expected Zhang Yixing to act so dramatically when he found Lu Han gone, especially since the pair had been having so much fun on their own.  

As he waits for the taxi to come pick him up, Yifan pulls out his phone and starts making notes about his observations from the past few hours. 

… 

Lu Han is only a little bit upset at having to leave Wu Yifan and Yixing at the gym, and it’s not because he feels jilted by their having fun without him. Mostly, it’s because staring at his shoes for the greater part of his night isn’t exactly on his list of fun things to do on a Friday night. So when Yixing rings his phone to apologize, he doesn’t even have to fake the sincerity as he tells his boyfriend that it’s alright and that he isn’t mad. Yixing, as usual, promises to make it up to him, suggesting that they do tomorrow night what they had planned for tonight. Lu Han agrees, but if history is any indication, Lu Han is pretty sure ‘Kris’ will manage to squeeze himself between them again.

…

It’s been a week since Yixing has stayed over at Lu Han’s for the night and vice versa. It bothers Yixing less than he had thought it would and blames it on the young man who goes by Kris. In fact, it’s Kris that bothers him. After their first meeting, it feels like Kris is everywhere. He’s shown up at his favourite coffee shop, and at the grocery store. Yixing and Lu Han haven’t had a moment to themselves ever since Kris introduced himself at that Chinese restaurant Lu Han seems to like so much.

Yixing has decided that this is due to one of two possible reasons. The first is Yixing’s paranoia speaking, and Kris is a stalker, though Yixing still hasn’t found a logical reason that would explain this. The second is the fairytale-lover in him speaking, and Kris and Yixing have their fates crossed.

It’s Sunday, and Jongin has called for an extra practice this morning at 7am. As with every other morning that Yixing has practice, he heads first to grab a coffee, and as expected, he finds that Kris is already there, reading something off his tablet as he sits in a couch sipping from his paper cup.

“Good morning, Yixing,” Kris greets when he looks up as the door opens.

Yixing swallows as he nods with a smile. He doesn’t recall when Kris started calling him without his surname and he can’t decide whether to like the familiarity or be wary of it. “Mornin’.”

“What are you doing up so early on a Sunday?” Kris asks, picking up his things to join Yixing as he waits for his cup of Joe.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Yixing says offhandedly without looking at Kris, mentally urging the barista to hurry.

A short moment of silence falls between as Kris moves so he can face Yixing properly, and Yixing makes a point of moving his focus to the pastries in the glass display.

“Are you okay, Yixing?” Kris asks.

Yixing takes his cup from the barista with a smile and a thank you. His paranoid self is more in control today and he decides that it’s time to leave.

“Yixing?” Kris calls again.

Yixing clenches his jaw once before turning to face Kris head on, “I have a boyfriend, Kris.” he says abruptly. “Please stop this.” He doesn’t wait for Kris to respond before he pushes the glass door open and heads towards practice.

The romantic in him wishes that Kris would chase after him.

*

Yixing is the unofficial second-in-command to Jongin in their dance group. He contributes to the second largest portion of choreography behind Jongin and ‘Lay’ has one of the bigger fan-bases in the group. So it’s rare that Yixing is ever off his game, even when they are ‘just practicing’. Yixing makes an effort to treat every run-through as though it is the real thing, but today, he’s just not hitting the right angles.

“Alright, let’s take five, guys,” Jongin calls out after the song ends and Yixing grabs his water bottle, sitting down in front of the mirror. Jongin joins him after he hits the stop button on the music player. “Alright, spit it out.”

“Spit what out?” Yixing asks after he swallows a large gulp of water.

“Whatever it is that’s bothering you, Yixing.”

“Nothing’s bothering me.”

“Oh, please. Even the guys know something’s up when you screw up _that_ many times in one hour, and I’m your best friend.”

“I’ll try harder after the break,” Yixing dodges. He’s not exactly in the mood to divulge his feelings, especially if he’s not sure of what he’s feeling himself.

Jongin crosses his arms dramatically and raises an eyebrow, conveying to Yixing that he isn’t going to be let off the hook that easily. “Is this about Lu Han?”

Yixing closes his eyes and breathes in heavily, “Kind of.”

“Still haven’t broken up with him, have you?”

Yixing shakes his head. After the one determined effort he’d put forth two Fridays ago, he hasn’t found another opportunity, especially not with Kris-the-constant-satellite-in-his-life.

“Is there someone else?”

Yixing hadn’t told Jongin about Kris and he isn’t sure he wants to. He doesn’t even know Kris’ last name. He doesn’t even know if Kris can be classified as ‘someone else’.

Jongin takes Yixing’s silence as confirmation anyway. “If you’re done with Lu Han, can I have him?” he jokes, earning him a glare from Yixing. Jongin grins and continues more seriously, “Look, you’re going to have to tell him eventually, and it’s better he finds out from you directly than, say, if he walks in on you doing the nasty with this third party you refuse to tell me about.”

Yixing ignores the second part of what Jongin says because he thinks it’s ridiculous that he and Kris would ever end up like that. Okay, _maybe_ he’s thought about Kris in that way _maybe_ twice, but _maybe_ that’s just because he hasn’t had sex in over a week.

“Besides,” Jongin continues, “You know you’re going to be the one who gets hurt in the end because you’re _that_ guy.”

“ _That_ guy?”

Jongin checks his watch, and, deciding that five minutes is almost up, he gets to his feet and holds out a hand to Yixing. “Yeah, the one who can’t step on an ant accidentally without losing at least a dozen hairs from the stress of feeling guilty.”

Yixing slaps Jongin’s hand and gets up without his help, “Shut up.”

Jongin laughs, “Just keep in mind that staying in a relationship because you feel responsible and guilty is not healthy.”

…

Yifan finds his pride getting more and more bruised every time Zhang Yixing turns him down. It’s the first time that Yifan has ever questioned his own professional abilities. Most of his similar cases would be over after a week on the job, where the only thing left to do was to disappear from his target’s lives. And yet here he was, still trying to figure out a way to get Zhang Yixing even _interested_.

He’d gotten the distinct feeling that Zhang Yixing had actually liked Kris on their wall climbing adventure, but every interaction after that has been less and less successful, and Yifan had gotten more and more indifferent responses from Zhang Yixing, ending in the most recent encounter where he had emphasized that he had a boyfriend before abandoning the coffee joint this morning.

Yifan leans back in his apartment couch, lightly tossing the tablet that housed a picture of Zhang Yixing’s face on the coffee table in front of him with a sigh.

“Woah, what’s got our almighty Wu Yifan so strung out and sighing so exasperatedly?”

Yifan turns to find his roommate, Park Chanyeol, pulling open the door to the fridge and pulling out a carton of milk. By how messy Chanyeol’s hair is and how he’s dressed only in his boxers, it’s obvious to Kris that his roommate has only just woken up. “It’s two in the afternoon. I know it’s Sunday, but isn’t this a bit ridiculous?”

Chanyeol shrugs as he joins Yifan, sitting on the arm on the couch as he drinks straight from the carton. “Baekhyun wanted to-”

Yifan scowls in disgust and puts a hand up before Chanyeol can continue, “Nevermind. Too much information, Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol grins and sets his carton down to pick up Yifan’s tablet instead. “Your newest project?” Yifan nods. “Cute,” Chanyeol says simply before handing it back to Yifan.

Yifan groans in distaste, “He’s a freakin’ nightmare.”

“Oh?” Chanyeol asks interestedly, picking up his drink again, “Is he what’s making you sigh so heavily first thing in the morning?”

“It’s two in the afternoon,” Yifan reminds his roommate.

“Whatever,” Chanyeol waves his hand, “Point is, I’ve never seen you stressed out about a job before.”

 _That’s because I don’t stress out about my job_ , Yifan wants to say, but decides that it’s redundant.

“He must be special,” Chanyeol mutters a moment later, and Yifan picks up a cushion to throw at his roommate, narrowly missing the carton in Chanyeol’s hand. Chanyeol laughs animatedly and tosses the cushion back, “I was just saying, Yifan. Calm down!”

Yifan scowls again, “Don’t you have somewhere to be? A boyfriend to get back to?” He asks bitterly.

Chanyeol gets up with a shaking head, “God, this guy must really be getting to you.”

 _The guy ‘getting to me’ is you, Chanyeol._ Yifan knows Chanyeol is a joker, but it doesn’t make it easier to digest what he had said because it’s true: this is the first time Yifan has had so much trouble and that definitely made Zhang Yixing special. 


	2. Chapter 2

“We should see other people.”

Lu Han has been expecting those words ever since he’d hired Wu Yifan, but unlike every other time it has happened in the past, Lu Han doesn’t like the sound of it coming from Yixing’s mouth. He’s not sure how it happened, especially since he had seen _less_ of Yixing but he cares _more_ about Yixing now, enough that it actually hurts a bit to think about the coming days without Zhang Yixing around to talk to about the most mundane things.

“This just isn’t working out, and I think you know it.”

Yes, Lu Han knows that the two of them have drifted even further in the past two weeks than they have been in the time before ‘Kris’ had shown up.

“It’s just better this way.”

Lu Han can’t see how this is ‘better’, but he’s the one who started this in the first place, so he has no business being upset about the consequences of his own actions.

Lu Han doesn’t say anything and only watches as Yixing turns around and starts walking in the opposite direction. He watches until Yixing disappears around the tree that marks the location he and Yixing kissed for the first time.

Lu Han takes a deep breath and reminds himself that this is what he had wanted in the first place, so there’s no point in being sad. As he heads home, he comforts himself by saying that at least he got out before his feelings for Yixing got any more serious.

…

Yixing doesn’t feel much better about finally being able to end things with Lu Han. Jongin was right when he said that Yixing would probably lose a couple of hairs. Yixing keeps replaying in his head the image of Lu Han’s blank face and his silence when Yixing finally had the nerve to follow through on his decision from two weeks ago.

It’s not the first time he’s broken up with someone, but that doesn’t make it any easier. What makes it even harder is the fact that he’s actually glad when he dips into his favourite coffee shop and finds Kris sitting in the back of the shop with a steaming cup. Yixing deviates from his usual and asks for a hot chocolate instead, taking his drink and joining Kris.

“Hi,” he announces himself, putting on a smile that he’s not sure is sincere.

Kris looks up from whatever he’s working on in surprise, flipping the cover over the screen of his device. “Oh, hi, Yixing.”

Yixing notes that Kris looks a little startled and that it takes a moment for Kris to wear his signature smile again. “Can I join you?” Yixing asks and realizes that this is the first time he’s actively engaged Kris in conversation and not the other way around.

“Yeah, sure,” Kris smiles again, picking up his tablet and stowing it into the messenger bag hanging off the back of his chair, leaving his phone on the table next to his drink. “Haven’t seen you here for a while.”

Yixing had been avoiding this shop, opting to go to a local Starbucks for his caffeine needs in the last couple of days instead. More specifically, he had been avoiding the possibility of meeting Kris. “Yeah,” he replies simply instead.

“How’ve you been?”

Yixing isn’t sure how to explain ‘how he’s been’. He’s been practicing harder, though his dancing seems to have gotten even worse despite the extra sessions, so much that Jongin has made him take the week off to fix whatever it is that is throwing off his game. He plays with the plastic lid on his paper cup for a moment. “I broke up with Lu Han,” he ends up blurting out without looking up.

“Oh?”

Yixing looks up at the minimal response with an eyebrow raised up into his forehead, “That’s it? ‘Oh?’” He asks, “Shouldn’t you be more enthusiastic, given then you’ve been pursuing me ever since we met?”

“So, you _did_ notice?” Kris asks.

Yixing rolls his eyes, “You’re about as subtle as an adult pig in a pen full of baby chicks,” he says, though he’s unsure what kind of analogy he’s making. “Of course I noticed,” he clarifies, “Why else would I have kept dodging your attempts?”

Kris keeps quiet, which Yixing finds strange, given that Kris had always been the talkative one between them.

“Fine, let me make this easy for you,” Yixing grabs Kris’ phone and calls his own phone before entering his contact information. “You. Me. Dinner tomorrow at 6pm at that terrible Chinese restaurant where we met.” He places the phone back in front of Kris before grabbing his cup and heading back to the front of the shop to leave.

As Yixing pushes open the door, a small smile graces his lips. Perhaps breaking up with Lu Han is less hard than he first thought.

…

Yifan stares at his phone, still sitting in the same spot that Zhang Yixing had left it in, his personal number glaring up at him in blockish numbers until the screen turns black from inactivity. He wants to berate himself for not ending it between Kris and Yixing while he had the opportunity. All he had had to say was that Zhang Yixing had it wrong in assuming that Kris was pursuing him, that he was just a nice guy who just wanted to be friends.

But instead, Yifan had said “So you _did_ notice.”

And then his heart skipped a beat when Zhang Yixing had asked him out to dinner.

After his short conversation with Chanyeol, Yifan had made Kris back off of Zhang Yixing for a bit, so he could reflect on what he was doing wrong. And yet, Yifan still found himself going back to the coffee shop that Zhang Yixing frequented. At first he convinced himself that it was because they served better coffee, but finally gave in to the fact that he had been hoping, if only a little, that Zhang Yixing would pop in and Kris could strike up a conversation with him. Except after the incident where Zhang Yixing had announced that he had a boyfriend, he didn’t show up again, not until today anyway.

And Zhang Yixing had announced this time, in much the same abrupt manner as last time, that he had ended things with Lu Han.

Which meant that Yifan’s job was done.

Which meant that Yifan no longer had a reason to see Zhang Yixing.

Wu Yifan had never had to put a clause in his contracts that prevented him from falling for a client’s target because there was never a need. Wu Yifan was always in control, and he always kept his personal and professional lives distinctly separate.

Yifan wishes he _had_ put in that clause, because at least that way, he would have an excuse not to show up tomorrow night.

…

Lu Han is about to dive into his bowl of kimchi fried rice when his doorbell rings. He grumbles at having his meal interrupted but gets up anyway. He doesn’t expect the person who’s on the other side of the door.

“Yixing?” Lu Han asks, a little too cheerfully, “What are you doing here?”

Yixing is carrying a small box with no cover and Lu Han recognizes several objects in it as his own. “I came to return some stuff you left at my place,” Yixing says flatly. Lu Han doesn’t respond with anything as he receives the box from Yixing. “You forgot your wallet too,” Yixing adds, pulling it from his jacket pocket and adding it to the pile.

“Oh, thanks.” Lu Han picks his wallet up and tucks it back into his pants’ back pocket. He’d only realized he’d left it at Yixing’s yesterday and had argued with himself about whether it would be easier to just call in to all the companies to report a lost card and get new ones than to call Yixing to get his wallet back. When Yixing doesn’t say or do anything else, Lu Han breaks the silence, “Uhm, was there anything else?”

Yixing seems to take a moment to compose his thoughts before he opens his mouth again, “Who’s Wu Yifan?”

Lu Han doesn’t have time to look shocked, “What?”

Yixing pulls the other hand he’s kept in his pocket and wields the familiar black business card in Lu Han’s face. “I didn’t mean to go through your stuff, really. But when I was gathering your stuff, your wallet fell and its contents spilled out onto the ground. I was putting everything back when I noticed this phone number. Why is it the same number as the one I got from Kris yesterday?”

Lu Han can’t tell if Yixing is angry. He has his arms crossed on his chest but his voice is calm and steady. Lu Han has never seen Yixing like this before and doesn’t know what to make of it. “He’s…” Lu Han starts, but doesn’t know how to finish.

“He’s…?” Yixing repeats, prompting Lu Han.

Lu Han doesn’t know how to explain that Kris is a fictional character that is played by someone called Wu Yifan, whom Lu Han hired to make Yixing break up with him so he doesn’t have to. “Kris… isn’t who you think he is,” Lu Han settles vaguely.

“That’s not very helpful, Lu Han. _Who is he, then?_ ”

…

Yixing shows up in front of the restaurant at 7:14pm, over an hour late from the time he’d told Kris yesterday. He stares in through the glass at the front of the building and finds Kris sitting by himself with his back towards the exit where Yixing stands. He can’t decide if he wants to go inside and confront Kris about being hired by Lu Han or if he wants to turn and run away.

He turns towards the empty road and takes a seat on the curb in front of a parked car. He pulls out the black card he found in Lu Han’s wallet and stares at the tiny print in the centre of the rectangle. He lets out a long sigh and flips the card out of his hand, watching it catch in the wind for a moment before it falls on the ground, not moving.

“You know, it’s a lot warmer inside. And there’s food too.”

Yixing looks up to find that Kris has joined him outside. He gets up, dusting the dirt off the seat of his jeans and doesn’t meet Kris’ eyes.

“Is something wrong, Yixing?”

Yixing wants to yell that yes, something _is_ wrong. _Everything_ is wrong. Kris isn’t even real, and Yixing let himself get played by him. He looks up at Kris, studies his features, because Yixing figures that’s just about the only thing Kris probably can’t lie about, the way his thick eyebrows fold together, and the way his gums show when he smiles.  

Yixing has never punched anyone before. He has an aversion to violence, but punching Kris, or Wu Yifan or whoever he is, seems like the logical thing to do. Yixing narrows his eyes at Kris, who’s rebounded from the blow with a hand to the corner of his mouth and a surprised look in his eyes, and bites out angrily, “I don’t want to see you ever again.”

Yixing is already turned around and heading home before he realizes that he doesn’t even mean what he just said, not really, because if it had been true, he wouldn’t have come to the restaurant in the first place.

It’s only when he rounds the corner that he realizes how much his hand hurts.

…

It’s not the punch that hurts Yifan the most, but the way Yixing looks when he says his next words.

Yifan still doesn’t know why Yixing hit him until his eye spots a small black rectangle lying a couple feet from where he stood. _Please don’t let it be what I think it is._ His fingers still massaging the area where he was hit, he takes a couple steps forwards and bends down to pick it up, turning it over to look at as he brings it up to his eyes. _Damn. I guess I deserved that punch then._

…

“What the hell happened to you?” Lu Han asks as he steps into Wu Yifan’s office to close off his account. There is a visible cut on Wu Yifan’s face at the edge of his mouth and he looks like he hasn’t slept in at least forty-eight hours. When Wu Yifan called him yesterday, he didn’t say anything about Lu Han’s breach in contract for telling Yixing about who Kris really was so Lu Han assumes that he doesn’t know.

“I need you to sign here,” Wu Yifan turns a couple of pages, ignoring Lu Han’s comment as he points at dotted lines with his custom-made pen, “And here. I just require the second half of the payment and then our business with each other is done.”

Lu Han nods and pulls out the check he’d written just before he’d left his place and puts it square in front of Wu Yifan before grabbing the pen and signing the necessary pages. “That’s everything?”

Wu Yifan nods, “That’s everything,” he says simply and Lu Han observes that this is the first time Wu Yifan doesn’t walk him cordially to the elevator after their meeting is over.

…

Yixing still has one more day of the vacation that Jongin mandated he take, and Yixing spends it in the coffee shop, reading, which he hasn’t done in a long time. He sits in the armchair closest to the window at the front of the shop and can’t help but look up every time the door opens. A small part of him still hopes that Kris will show up, but then the other part of him yells at him because Kris doesn’t exist and Wu Yifan’s job is already done so there’s no reason why he’d come back to this place.

…

Wu Yifan can’t concentrate on his work. He’s been sitting in his living room for the past hour, trying to work from home because his office is starting to feel suffocating with its gray walls and boring curtains. He’s never wanted Chanyeol to distract him so much, but of course, Yifan’s roommate is nowhere to be found when he’s needed. “Probably out with Baekhyun again,” he mutters to himself before taking another sip of his sixth cup of coffee today. Yifan hasn’t slept well the past few nights and it only makes him even more tired during the day. He knows that drinking a million cups of coffee during the day is only going to perpetuate the cycle but he can’t stop, even though coffee no longer has that pleasant bitterness to it, especially since Yifan now gets it from the local chain again and not from Zhang Yixing’s favourite standalone shop. Now coffee is just bland and taste somewhat like stale water.

Restless, Kris hops up from the couch, deciding that he isn’t going to get much work done anyway. He heads to his room to change into something more comfortable before grabbing his keys and heading towards the rock climbing gym he had brought Lu Han and Zhang Yixing to a few weeks ago.

Yifan hadn’t imagined that going to the one place he knew always succeeded in keeping his mind occupied would fail him today. The place is not busy, with just a handful of visitors, just the way Yifan likes it, except this time, one of them is Zhang Yixing. Yifan watches him practically fly up the wall with ease before he makes his way over hesitantly.

“Still as limber as ever?” He says once Zhang Yixing makes it to the bottom again.

Zhang Yixing turns around when he realizes he’s being addressed and Yifan watches as he swallows in between heavy breaths from his climb but doesn’t answer. Instead, Zhang Yixing unclips himself and heads over the next wall.

Yifan takes a deep breath because he’s about to do something he’s probably going to regret later, “Look, I know what I did was wrong and you’re right to be angry with me right now, but it was my job and you weren’t supposed to find out, anyway.”

“Oh, well, excuse me for being observant, then,” Zhang Yixing retorts quietly.

Yifan groans, “That’s not what I meant. You were just an assignment,” Yifan starts again but realizes his mistake when Yixing shoots him a dirty look, “I mean, a job…. I mean… Oh forget what I meant. Yes, at first, that’s what you were to me, just another target, but then you weren’t. I didn’t start going to that stupid coffee house all the time because I had to, I started doing that because I wanted to, because coffee just tasted better when you were around. And I never want to do anything for a job. It used to be simple, but then I started not being able to tell Kris from Yifan anymore.  Can’t you and I just start afresh? Like all that crap didn’t just happen and I wasn’t an asshole that was hired to get you to break up with your boyfriend? Because I can’t sleep at night knowing how much you must hate me right now and I think I’ve had too much crappy coffee before I got here because coffee that’s not from your favourite shop tastes like shit and God, I wish you would just say something because I’m rambling and I don’t even know anything anymore.”

Yifan finally stops talking to catch his breath, biting down hard on his lip to prevent another session of terrible word vomit that he’s sure he’s going to hate himself for once the caffeine leaves his system.

The corners of Zhang Yixing’s mouth almost twitch upwards as he pulls on the rope attached to his harness to make sure it’s secure before he clears his throat and a tiny bit of hope warms Yifan’s chest.

“Beat me to the top and I’ll think about it.”


End file.
